2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 40:1299.96 — Health care information; records

PART XXIX.  HEALTH CARE INFORMATION

§1299.96.  Health care information; records

A.(1)  Each health care provider shall furnish each patient, upon request of the patient, a copy of any information related in any way to the patient which the health care provider has transmitted to any company, or any public or private agency, or any person.

(2)(a)  Medical records of a patient maintained in a health care provider's office are the property and business records of the health care provider.

(b)  Except as provided in R.S. 44:17, a patient or his legal representative, or in the case of a deceased patient, the executor of his will, the administrator of his estate, the surviving spouse, the parents, or the children of the deceased patient, or, after suit has been instituted,  the defense counsel or the defense insurance company seeking any medical, hospital, or other record relating to the patient's medical treatment, history, or condition, either personally or through an attorney, shall have a right to obtain a copy of such record upon furnishing a signed authorization and upon payment of a reasonable copying charge, not to exceed one dollar per page for the first twenty-five pages, fifty cents per page for twenty-six to five hundred pages, and twenty-five cents per page thereafter, a handling charge not to exceed fifteen dollars for hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care providers, and actual postage.  The individuals named herein shall also have the right to obtain copies of patient X-rays, microfilm, and electronic and imaging media, upon payment of reasonable reproduction costs and a handling charge of twenty dollars for hospitals and ten dollars for other health care providers.  In the event a hospital record is not complete, the copy of the records furnished hereunder may indicate, through a stamp, coversheet, or otherwise, that the record is incomplete.

(c)  If a copy of the record is not provided within a reasonable period of time, not to exceed fifteen days following the receipt of the request and written authorization, and production of the record is obtained through a court order or subpoena duces tecum, the health care provider shall be liable for reasonable attorney fees and expenses incurred in obtaining the court order or subpoena duces tecum.  Such sanctions shall not be imposed unless the person requesting the copy of the record has by certified mail notified the health care provider of his failure to comply with the original request, by referring to the sanctions available, and the health care provider fails to furnish the requested copies within five days from receipt of such notice.  Except for their own gross negligence, such health care providers shall not otherwise be held liable in damages by reason of their compliance with such request or their inability to fulfill the request.

(d)  A health care provider may deny access to a record if the health care provider reasonably concludes that knowledge of the information contained in the record would be injurious to the health or welfare of the patient or could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or safety of any other person.

(e)  Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit or prohibit access to the information contained in the records of a patient maintained by a health care provider in any legally permissible manner other than those delineated pursuant to R.S. 22:213.2 and in this Section, subject to the provisions of R.S. 13:3734.

(3)(a)  Medical and dental records shall be retained by a physician or dentist in the original, microfilmed, or similarly reproduced form for a minimum period of six years from the date a patient is last treated by a physician or dentist.

(b)  Graphic matter, images, X-ray films, and like matter that were necessary to produce a diagnostic or therapeutic report shall be retained, preserved and properly stored by a physician or dentist in the original, microfilmed or similarly reproduced form for a minimum period of three years from the date a patient is last treated by the physician or dentist.  Such graphic matter, images, X-ray film, and like matter shall be retained for a longer period when requested in writing by the patient.

B.  As used in this Section:

(1)  "Health care provider" means a "health care provider" as defined in R.S. 40:1299.41 or a "state health care provider" as defined in R.S. 40:1299.39.

(2)  "Patient" means a natural person who receives or should have received health care from a licensed health care provider, under a contract, express or implied.

C.  The provisions of this Section shall not be applicable to a health care provider who has evaluated or examined a patient at the request of any agency of the state or federal government in charge of the administration of any of the assistance or entitlement programs under the Social Security Act.  The records of such evaluation or examination shall be retained for ninety days after mailing or upon proof of receipt of the records, whichever period is shorter.  Nothing herein shall be construed as limiting or prohibiting the access to health care information and records of a patient that are retained by the Social Security Administration in any legally permissible manner under state law that is not contrary to federal law or regulation.

Added by Acts 1979, No. 685, §1.  Acts 1989, No. 205, §1, eff. June 26, 1989; Acts 1990, No. 766, §1, eff. July 24, 1990; Acts 1991, No. 212, §1; Acts 1991, No. 427, §1; Acts 1991, No. 586, §1; Acts 1991, No. 659, §1; Acts 1995, No. 521, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1996; Acts 1995, No. 920, §2; Acts 2001, No. 839, §1; Acts 2003, No. 1260, §1.